Aaron and Caroline

So I read about this challenge to take a picture of yourself every day for a year.  Originally, I thought that was an incredibly self-conceited kind of resolution.  However, after thinking on it for a little bit, I actually thought it would be a perfectly timely thing for me to do so I added it to my New Years Resolution list.  

Here's my reasoning (and justification so I don't seem so vain): this challenge would force me to use my new camera every day and get to know its features better, photographing the same thing pushes you to get creative with lighting/angles/etc., and finally, Aaron would get pretty sick of me photographing HIM everyday and since we don't have any children yet I am kind of the only person I am with daily that I could photograph

So it's 17 days into January and I can't say that I've been perfect but it has been one of my better kept resolutions so far!

Here are my thoughts on the whole project so far:

1) Doing self-take pictures (you know, where you hold the camera out yourself and take the picture) get pretty old pretty quickly when it is just you in the picture.  Also, these pictures are a lot more difficult to do with a clunkier SLR.  So dad, you would be proud that I am moving on from this phase of my life!

2) I know that natural lighting is key to a good photo, and that the my favorite lighting is in the morning BUT seeing as I leave for work when it's dark and get home from work when it's dark this presents a problem.  So, I am going to have to learn how to make good photos in more challenging lighting.

3) I feel awkward when it's just a photo of me so I think this challenge will force me to up my confidence.

4) Self-timer is a pain, especially when you don't have a tri-pod or a little clicker.  I'm going to have to work this out somehow.

5) I want this project to tell a story about my life and not just be a chance for a daily glamour shot.  For example, on January 2nd, the day before I went back to work, I spent the day in grubby clothes with practically no make-up and just graded students' essay like crazy.  As a result, my picture that day was a quick and rather unattractive photo, capturing my exhausted looking face. Doing the challenge this way will be a daily snapshot of life.

6) I have been using my camera a lot because of this challenge and have been getting better at fiddling around with settings. Can't wait to see what becomes of my skills in 359 days!

Don't worry, I will spare showing you all of the pictures but I may give an update every once in a while.  So wish me luck that I keep up with the challenge and don't get bored of it too quickly.